__Even when not in litigation, state and federal Superfund matters, known as Part 201 cases in Michigan, involve complex regulations.  Counsel may be needed to assist in a the defense of claims by the state, negotiations among private parties, private and municipal interactions, work with consulting firms and the choices to be made in connection with site investigation, feasibility analysis, remedial action, agency oversight, no further action letters and long term operation and maintenance.

Site remediation can be expensive and involve long-term management, with 30-year operation and/or monitoring or remedial measures common.  Sometimes, remedies will involve ongoing obligations and new issues as time passes.  Landfills may generate leachate and methane.  Plumes may be affected by seasonal changes.  Source area control measures and removal actions may have to be started and monitored.  Approved remedial measures may prove to be less than fully successful, requiring the responsible parties to go back to the drawing board to consider supplemental remedies.

Throughout this process, other regulatory actions may lurk and threaten responsible parties.  State and federal agencies may seek damages for harm to natural resources, a substantial cost independent of the remediation itself.  Five-year reviews involve agency assessment of remedial success and failure, and may result in additional demands.  Financial assurance requirements will continue.  Changes in the financial status of co-PRPs, such as bankruptcy of one or more members of a PRP group, may cause the relative shares of surviving companies to increase.  Disputes with agencies regarding securing the benefits of a financial assurance mechanism or bankruptcy funds settlement for response actions may require sustained attention.  Differences in corporate management styles or priorities may result in disputes within a group as to collective implementation of planned work and/or joint responses to agency demands.  When these types of issues arise, you will want to have counsel working for you who understands your priorities.